


Solitude is Not the Absence of Love

by d00nut



Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Minecraft, Angst, M/M, Multi, OT6, Slow Build
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-07-06
Updated: 2015-09-08
Packaged: 2018-04-07 21:51:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,773
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4279233
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/d00nut/pseuds/d00nut
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When the guys shipwreck at sea, they wash up on the shores of a bountiful yet dangerous island. They come across the island's only inhabitant, the lonely warrior Mogar. He must teach them how to survive on the island of Achievement City. They slowly grow closer but how does one act around five lovers when they've never met another person before? </p><p>Danger lurks everywhere and the darkest kind is waiting to strike.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Shores Bring You Home

**Author's Note:**

> The summary is terrible. It may change.  
> I'm very excited about this story and I hope you guys love it!

Water splashed onto the deck and nearly knocked him off his feet. He could hear the screams of the others as another wave rocked the ship. The mizzenmast had already collapsed and the mainmast was about to go by the sound of wood cracking, unless that was the rest of the ship, he couldn’t tell through the chaos that was the waves and the storm. He could see the silhouette of Jack as he picked Ray up from the floor.

They were going to die out here.

This had been his idea, this idea of finding a new home so they could escape persecution. People weren’t tolerant of two men being in a relationship, let alone _five_ men. They left so they could live and love freely and now they’re going to die out here in this storm. They were going to drown. Even if they did survive, the sails were torn beyond repair and they’ll be lost at sea.

The rain was pouring down hard, making it nearly impossible to see anything. He heard the crack of the mainmast as it fell and distantly heard a shriek of pain. His heart seized and he grabbed on to whatever he could to get to his boyfriend. He saw a small body trapped under the mast.

“Geoff!” Gavin screamed, holding his trapped leg.

As he got closer, he heard a shout and the ship tilted.

He turned to see Ryan slide and smash into the railings. He yelled for Ryan to get up, please, but he didn’t move. Swearing, he turned around and tried to get Gavin’s leg free. Lightning was flashing and thunder boomed seconds later. When lightning struck, he could see the figures of Jack and Ray sliding around, trying to make their way to Ryan.

Blinking rain out of his eyes, he lifted Gavin up and the younger man could barely stand up. He turned to see Ryan stumble to a standing position, hand gripping the railing.

He yelled for the gent and the ship tilted-

_Ryan fell into the water-_

The screams he heard next will be with him even in death. Geoff couldn’t find his voice because _he could've saved him- could've saved them all-_

The ship continued to tilt and Gavin was ripped from his grasp. He lost his footing soon after and was airborne for a split second before he crashed into the water.

 

\---

 

_Searching for hands-_

_Reaching for bodies-_

_Waves crashing down on them-_

_Water in their noses and throats and-_

 

\---

 

He had been restless since yesterday’s storm, he’d had to stay in and he’d been bored since. It had been a bad storm or otherwise he would’ve been out in it.

Walking out of his home, he picked up his sword and checked for creepers before heading towards the beach. He went there after every terrible storm to look for objects that the waves carried from far off places. Sometimes he got bottles filled with paper and sometimes he got things from ships that lost their cargo or sunk.

When he got to the beach, the first thing he noticed was the quiet. It was odd seeing no animals in sight. The second thing he noticed was the debris. There was more than ever before. Wood scattered in the water and on the beach.

‘ _A shipwreck_ ,’ his mind supplied.

He furrowed his brow and looked around, he didn’t see much else. His eyes caught a body lying face down on the sand, waves gently splashing against them. His breath caught in his throat.

He contemplated running away, but the figure gave out a pained groan and he suddenly felt compelled to stay, so he watched in fascination as the man slowly lifted himself up from the wet sand.

He had dirty blonde hair and had a large frame, his clothes were torn and soaked to his skin. When he looked closer he saw the man had a large gash on the back of his head.

The man rolled onto his back and coughed. Then he slowly rose to a sitting position and began looking around with squinted eyes. Mogar then saw his face. The lower half of his face was covered in a short beard. He was...handsome. Mogar frowned, he’d never used that word before.

Mogar shifted where he was standing. Not sure if he should flee yet. The man was bigger than him and he could see the muscles moving under his wet shirt; he could be a danger to him.

“Wha-?” The man turned his upper body around and their eyes met. The man’s eyes widened and he stared dumbly like a cow. Mogar’s breathing picked up and he felt his blood pumping through him.

He turned on his heel and ran for the trees. He heard a yell coming from behind him but he didn’t slow. When he got a safe distance away, he started climbing a tree. When he got near the top, he could see the man standing looking around wildly, like he was looking for something-but he didn’t follow Mogar into the forest, instead, he took off down the beach.

Mogar frowned and tilted his head in confusion, shifting in the tree to get a better look at his retreating figure. Who was he looking for?

He made his way down the tree.

Maybe there were others?

 

\---

 

When Ryan woke up, the first two things he noticed were the sound of waves and the feel of wet sand beneath him. His mind was foggy and his throat and nose burnt of sea water. He couldn’t recall where he was or what happened.

He rolled onto his back and coughed trying to stop the burn in his throat. The back of his head stung and when he touched it, he winced and pulled his hand back to see blood coating his fingers. He slowly pushed himself to a sitting position and looked around. The sun hurt his eyes and the pain from his head wound was growing. He momentarily forgot about when his ears picked up the sound of sand scrunching and turned around to make eye contact with a pale skinned, rugged figure.

He froze, taken by surprise at the man’s presence and their image. A bear skin was draped over them. The bear’s head hung over the man’s own curly head. His face was marked with red paint and something shined at his belt. He couldn’t get a clear description of his face before the man turned and fled.

“W-wait!” He called almost hesitantly, but the person kept running and by the Ryan had stumbled to his feet, he had vanished. His shoulder’s slumped at the loss of his only hope of finding out where he was. He sighed, then shot up from his slump as a sudden thought hit him and his heart jumped and his eyes widened.

‘ _The others!_ ’

 

\---

 

Gavin had been awake for a while now. His leg was busted to bugger all. It wasn’t broken- somehow the mast hadn’t smashed it to pieces, only bruised to high hell.

He was alone. He tried to not think about it. About how he was possibly going to die here alone. About the tears running down his face. The feeling he was experiencing was like nothing before- terrifying. Like there was no hope. He didn’t know how to survive in the wild. He wanted the others.

His nose, eyes and throat were burning so bad. He hated sea water. He glared at the ocean and paused his thoughts.

He could see something floating out on the water, bobbing slowly against the waves. He stood up from where he was sitting in the dirt and limped to the sand, trying to get a better view. He noticed it as a piece of their ship and his eyes welled with tears at the thought of the ship, but he kept limping until he was knee deep in the water. His heart seized when he made out something hanging onto the floating wreckage.

He yelled, forgoing his hurting leg, he pushed through the water and began swimming towards the floating wood.

“Ray!” He screamed, he wasn’t much of a swimmer, but he’d been damned if that was going to stop him from getting to one of his lovers. He actually didn’t know how he’d survived the wreck in the first place. He kicked his feet and used his arms as much as he could to stay afloat. His leg hurt under the strain but he wouldn’t allow himself to slow or stop.

When he reached the board, he noticed how Ray was limply hanging onto his makeshift raft, eyes closed and mouth parted. Gavin’s heart soared with joy when he shook Ray’s shoulder and the lad began to wake.

He started swimming back to the beach, pulling Ray with him. He kept turning his head to check on Ray, to make sure he was actually there and wasn’t imagining this. By the time his feet graced the sand under the water, Ray was beginning to fully wake up.

“Gav…?” He whispered before coughing. Gavin grabbed Ray’s shoulders and hauled him out of the water, collapsing on the wet sand together. Gavin met Ray’s eyes and the corners of his mouth tugged up unconsciously.

“Yeah?” He reached out for the other’s hands and was glad when his boyfriend met half way. Ray just smiled at him tiredly and leaned in, pressing his forehead to Gavin’s. They stayed like that for a while before Ray pulled away. Gavin watched as Ray’s face twisted to concern.

“Have you seen the others?” Ray’s voice was gravelly and Gavin winced at his voice and the question. He could tell by the face Ray was making that he already knew the answer. He tried to force himself from crying but his eyes were already misting.

Ray’s face fell and his expression went very sad, Gavin realized that he had tears trailing down his face and suddenly Ray did too. Ray opened his mouth to say something, but his eyes caught something behind him. Ray froze and his mouth grew slack. Gavin frowned at Ray’s wide eyes and spun around.

Behind him, crouching in the shadows of the trees was a bear. They could see its head poking up over some tall shrubs. Gavin’s heart nearly jumped out of his chest. He heard Ray make a startled noise in the back of his throat. They watched as the bear rose and-

Gavin’s fear switched to curiosity.

What they had thought was a bear was actually a man wearing a bear skin on his head. They noticed how the man was stuck between running or staying, so they didn’t move. The man hesitantly stepped out from behind the shrubs and came into the light.

Gavin knew the man must be primitive, but his clothes said something different. He was wearing yellow shorts and a brown sleeveless shirt. Everything looked handmade his gloves, belt, even his shoes. He had white wrappings around his arms and calves. Which was odd-

Ray shifted behind him and the man stiffened, his feet adjusting in the sand. Possibly about to run. Gavin then realized that they’d just been looking at each other the whole time.

“H-hello,” Gavin said cautiously.

The guy looked like he was surprised by Gavin’s voice. He didn’t say anything for a long time and just looked at them with bare curiosity.

“Do you speak or what,” Ray mono toned. Gavin looked back at him with wide eyes, glaring. He turned back around to see if the man hadn’t taken that hostilely. He hadn’t, but now he was crouched, watching them at their eye level now. He must not take either of them as a threat. Gavin and Ray would have taken that offensively any other time, but now they were relaxed at his change of position.

“Where did you come from?” They jerked at the man’s voice. It didn’t sound like he used it often- it was gruff and quiet.

“W-what?” He was so taken by surprise he didn’t exactly hear what he’d said.

The man’s eyebrows furrowed and he blushed, going shy, “did you...come from the sea?”

Gavin didn’t know what to say, so Ray chose to answer for him, thankfully, “something like that, yes.”

Gavin was in awe of this man. Was he the only one living here? When he asked him this, the man looked down and didn’t answer.

A sudden thought sprung up in Gavin’s mind, “have you see anyone else? Anyone that looked similar to us, like with what we’re wearing?”

He peaked up at them and nodded hesitantly, it made him look small. Gavin and Ray shared a look of excitement.

“What did they look like?” Ray asked, grabbing Gavin’s shoulder.

The man thought for a moment, then opened his mouth-

“ _Ray! Gavin!_ ” They heard a voice scream. They turned towards the sound and saw Ryan running towards them. The lads shot up and ran to meet him halfway. Gavin ignored the pain in his leg, because it was Ryan. They collided hard, arms encircling one another. Gavin felt himself ease a little, the panic quieting, if only for a while, as him and Ray pressed to Ryan’s body in one of the most fiercest hugs he’s ever given.

“I’ve been walking for hours now- _oh thank God_ that I found two,” Ryan nearly sobbed with relief. They could feel him shaking. “I haven’t found anyone else, but I’m glad you two are safe.”

“It’s so good to know someone else is okay,” Ray mumbled into Ryan’s chest, pulling at Gavin’s shirt as he spoke. They stood there, huddled together for another moment.

Gavin let go first, “Ryan, we met someone who lives here, look-”

He turned and there was no one there, only the sound of wind rustling leaves and the soft waves.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had to edit it because of some editing issues. A big thank you to alement for pointing them out :)

His muscles ached with every movement, his feet started hurting long ago. His back burned and his calves hurt like high hell. Geoff had been walking for a while, he wasn’t sure how long.

‘ _Long as dicks_ ,’ his mind supplied sourly.

He had been up long enough for his clothes to dry and for the panic to set in and then for the panic to subside, leaving only fear and heartache. He pushed all his thoughts away. All the _‘they’re dead because of you’_ and _‘you killed them’_ and _‘I’d rather kill myself than be without them.’_

He felt his eyes heat up and he screwed his eyes shut, rubbing his hands over them. It was a bad idea because he kept walking as he did so and he ran straight into something big. He yelped, falling back on his ass and ended up looking up at the sky. Without even glancing at what he collided with he guessed who it was and his heart soared. He’d been with them longer than the others and knew his body as much as he knew his own.

“Jack?” He whispered in a thick voice, blinking back tears. Dammit. Jack was a big softy, he didn’t want Jack to see him cry. He’d cried in front of him more than he’d like, but it didn’t mean that he hated the bigger man having to witness it.

“Hi, Geoff,” Jack’s voice was something he’d never hear again and he felt that emotion rise, thick in his chest and throat. His voice could be light and deep at the same time and he had missed it greatly- along with the others’ voices.

Geoff huffed out a laugh, relief making his weak. He doubted he could get up without help, “well, are you going to help me up?”

He heard shuffling and Jack’s face was suddenly above his and his voice caught in his throat. Two arms pulled him up and didn’t let go and once his knees stopped wobbling, he lunged at Jack and was met with open arms. They crushed each other in their arms. Fear gripped at them as images of their other lovers crossed their minds. Thoughts of them being the only survivors had them sliding to the ground. The gravity of their situation was crushing them. Geoff breathed in the smell of sea water and sweat and his horrifying thoughts left him for a moment. They were content to just kneel there in each other’s arms, but there was one nagging thought that they both shared.

When Geoff pulled back and met Jack’s stare he saw the same feeling that he was experiencing.

“If we made it, then the others had to of survived,”Jack told Geoff, sounding as if he was pleading for the other to agree. “Maybe they’re on the shore? That’s where I woke up...I looked for you guys- but I was weak and needed to find something to eat.”

Geoff nodded, hoping Jack was right. He laughed at Jack’s guilty confession, “you find anything?” He asked, feeling a little famished himself.

Jack nodded and shucked a hand into his pocket, pulling out a handful of berries.

"I decimated a berry bush." Geoff laughed out loud and, feeling his stomach growl, took some of the berries and popped them into his mouth with a grateful smile.

"Let's head towards the beach," Geoff started walking, but stopped abruptly shortly after he started. "Where the fuck is the beach?"

Jack laughed and pointed in the opposite direction. "I was walking near the beach a while ago before I found you," he explained.

Geoff sighed dramatically and followed the big bearded man. He was feeling better after finding him, but the pain in his chest wasn't about to go away.

The more he thought about it, he began to feel worse, "what are we going to do, Jack?" Geoff asked sullenly. He looked up at the trees and listened as birds chirped. If Ryan, Ray and Gavin were alive, he wondered where they were and how they were feeling. He wondered if they felt as helpless as he did. He hoped they'd found each other and were looking for him and Jack. He fucking prayed that they weren't dead or stranded at sea.

He heard the sound of sniffling and his head snapped up. Jack was walking in front of him, his shoulders were hunched and his hands were clenched. His heart tugged and Geoff hurried to catch up with the taller man.

He grabbed his arm, "Jack?" Said man stopped and Geoff bumped into him from behind. He rubbed his arm and waited. He knew Jack had a gentle heart, he cared a lot. He was probably the most distraught out of both of them.

"I don't know," Geoff frowned at Jack's statement.

"What?" He said back, confused. He had forgot his previous question.

"I don't know what we're going to do!" Jack cried, facing him then. Geoff's face fell at Jack's teary, red-blotchy face. Feeling helpless, Geoff pulled him into a hug and let his own tears fall. Geoff and Jack slowly knelt down and sat on the forest floor. They didn't move for a while after that.

 

\---

 

They had decided to start searching again. They didn't know how much time they'd wasted sitting on the ground. They didn't know anything.

Jack was pushing back tree branches and bushes to clear was for Geoff when he heard the sound of something in the woods. It sounded like something running and it was getting louder and louder. Probably an animal- a large one by the sound it was making. Jack turned to Geoff who was wide eyed and frowned. He motioned for Geoff to come closer and they hid behind a tree.

"What is it?" Jack heard Geoff ask, but Jack was too busy trying to listen to whatever was out there.

Straining his ear, he noticed that the noise was growing closer. Heart beating fast in his chest, he walked out from behind the tree. He squinted at the trees and bushes, trying to see where the sound was coming from. The animal was getting closer. His eyes widened and he turned around-

The animal slammed into him, he stumbled, air leaving his lungs at the impact. Was that a baby bear-?

When he regained his balance he suddenly realized that it was not a baby bear at all.

A man in a bear skin was on the ground scrambling away from them. He was staring challengingly at Jack. The bearded man immediately raised his hands and backed away. He glanced over at Geoff, whose mouth was hanging open almost comically.

"Well..." Geoff started, licking his lips nervously. "That wasn't what I was expecting."

The man shot up, rolling onto his feet and into a defensive stance, eyes going between the two gents. Jack watched his fists clench.

"Who are you and why are all of you here?" The man spat. The bear head had fallen from the man's and revealed thick russet curls. He looked young, like the lads. Although his face was marked with red paint, they could clearly see dark freckles covering his cheeks and nose. He watched them like he wasn’t sure who was the predator and who was the prey. Jack and Geoff clearly felt like the latter.

The man's words struck both of them, "I'm Geoff a-and this is Jack, our ship was- well it’s a long story but we somehow ended up on the beach here." Geoff said hesitantly, taking a step towards the fallen man. He was going help him up, try to be friendly. "Did you say 'all of you'?"

Jack was nervously watching Geoff. The young man was watching Geoff with cautious eyes and it was putting Jack on edge. That's when he noticed the- _diamond?_ \- sword hanging on his belt. Jack jerked forward, like he was going to try and yank Geoff back. The man saw him, his tense shoulders rose and in one swift movement, rolled to his feet with his sword in his hands.

"Whoa!" Geoff yelled, jumping back, his hands going up in a defensive position. "We're friendly! We aren't your enemies! Listen, buddy, we're lost! Okay? We aren't looking for trouble!"

The man's expression went annoyed, but his stance never changed, "my name is not Buddy," he sounded confused.

While Geoff tried not to laugh at the young man's words, Jack spoke up with a gentle voice, "what is your name then? We don't want to misname you."

The man didn't look like he wanted to answer, but he lowered his sword- so Jack moved on.

"A while ago you said 'all of you', what did that mean?" The two gents hoped that the man had seen the others.

He swallowed, squinting his eyes at them, "I saw others."

Geoff let out an aggravated sigh, he was growing restless with this guy- he needed straight answers! "well, how many?"

The curly headed man frowned at the man's tone. He dropped his stance and put his sword away, but still watched them with faint distrust. "I saw three others."

They let out a sigh together, turning towards each other as their chests burned with joy.

"They're alive!" Geoff laughed with relief. Jack's eyes were wet, so the shorter gent wiped them clear.

 

\---

They had momentarily forgot about the native man, who was watching them with an odd look on his face. His cheeks went red with embarrassment and he looked away. They confused him and their acts towards each other made him uncomfortable, he was unsure why. When they remembered his presence, they turned quickly and his head shot up to meet them. They were odd and he didn't know why he was still here talking to them. He needed to leave, he didn’t feel comfortable and Mogar wasn’t sure if they were trying to trick him- he’d never met other people before.

"Where were they?" The tall bearded one asked in a hurried voice. His feet were shifting like he couldn’t wait a second longer and when he looked at the other man’s feet, he noticed that he was doing the same. Both were excited and clearly wanted to find those three men, so he spared them from their restlessness and pointed towards the way he came from and they spared him no other thought, running towards the beach.

Mogar contemplated on following them, but suddenly became too hesitant, too wary, and headed home. He must be mad for thinking about going with them- five on one? That couldn’t possibly go well for him. He ignored the fact that he found himself looking back for them repeatedly. He found himself touching his throat. It had been weird using his voice and he couldn't remember the last time he’d used it so much in one day. All of these different emotions swirled in his head and he didn’t like it. Stepping into the safety of his house brought him no peace as he kept thinking of people and how it made his chest warm and his stomach tingly. He ignored the descending sun and the dark that would soon come, bringing out the evil that lurked there.


	3. Chapter 3

"Gavin I swear to Go-"

"But, _Ray_ -"

"No! Don't ' _but, Ray_ ' me!" The younger lad exclaimed, walking faster than the Brit, trying to get away from him.

Ryan sighed and ran his hand through his hair. Ray and Gavin had been fighting for what seemed like maybe an hour or so. Ray didn't want to hear about Gavin's worries, he had his own, the same ones- Ryan did too- but the constant focus of them was putting Ray on the edge and he couldn't think straight.

"Gavin?" Ryan called, the sullen lad turned around at his name and he fell back to walk by him. "Let's leave him be for now, okay?"

Gavin looked to where Ray was, walking heavily a few feet ahead of them and nodded defeatedly, "I... didn't mean to be a bother."

"You're not a bother, he just doesn't want our current situation to be pushed in his face as much as it already is," Ryan explained softly. Gavin hummed, accepting his explanation.

"I...wish that that man hadn't ran off," Gavin changed the subject awkwardly. "He could've helped us more, ya know?"

Ryan didn't bother to point out the subject change. He nodded, "he could've helped us find food and drinkable water."

Gavin frowned and motioned to the water, "there's bloody water right there!"

Ryan groaned and rubbed his face. Perfect. He needed Jack. He scratched his face, "you can't drink salt water Gavin."

"And why not?" Of course he wouldn't believe him.

"Because you will die of dehydration," and with that Ryan glanced at Gavin to see his mouth shaped in a small 'o' and he shook his head.

He started to think of the ship and all of the cargo they had on it. Fresh water, food, clothing, personal belongings... He hadn't really thought about the loss because his other- more emotional- loss was what mattered to him more.

"I had a new pair of trousers on that ship-" Gavin started and Ryan heard Ray moan. He looked ahead of him  to see that Ray had stopped to look at Gavin with a face that showed he wasn't surprised at the other lad's statement. "You're a real piece of shit, you know that?"

Gavin pouted and mumbled, "sod off," and then a quieter, "they were bloody expensive."

The last comment went ignored. They were quiet after that.

"Geoff would know what to do," Ryan mumbled, thinking of the ex-military man. A low noise stopped them in their tracks. Ryan's heartbeat spiked when he realized it was a scream and he knew exactly who it belonged to. When he looked at Ray and Gavin, he knew that they knew who it was.

"Geoff!" Ryan yelled, running into the forest, Gavin and Ray following behind him.

\---

 

"Ryan would know what to do," Geoff whined to Jack. The bearded man rolled his eyes, he was thankful Geoff didn't see him do that.

They had ran for a few minutes before they grew tired and had to stop to catch their breath. They were way out of shape. They hadn't realized they were so far away from the beach. Jack then thought of the bear man, who had been sprinting towards them, he had came from the beach. He must be extremely fit.

"Geoff, we shouldn't of let that guy behind," Jack said with a hint of guilt.

"Why's that?" Geoff asked him absentmindedly. He didn't stop trudging through the thick forest, he was determined to get to the others before dark. He didn't know what lurked out here, they needed to find them and fast. He didn't really care for the man they'd met just an hour or so ago. He told them where Ryan, Gavin and Ray were but he didn't look like he really wanted to talk to let let alone be in the same vicinity as them.

"Well, it was rude and he told us where the others were, maybe if we'd stayed a little longer, we could've asked him to lead us to them!" Jack sighed, Geoff continued to walk through the shrubbery.

 _'Well shit,_ ' Geoff thought miserably, cursing at his own stupidity. He could've found them food too. He'd been a little wary of them, but he seemed nice enough to help them. Now how would they ever find him? Who knew how big this place was, they had no maps or any sort of familiarity with this place.

As they continued to walk, sulking about their mistake, they didn't notice the snake lying hidden in the grass. Geoff heard the hiss a little too late, he felt a sting in his leg and looked down to see a black snake biting his ankle. He froze, his chest tightened as he sucked in a gasp.

Jack's eyes widened at the image before him, he tried to calm the man in front of him, "Geoff-"

He startled as Geoff unleashed a fearful scream. Geoff jerked and  moved in a frantic way. Jack staying a little ways back, not knowing what was going on or what to do.

"Get it off, get it off, get it off!" Geoff chanted, screaming and flailing his body.

"Geoff- Geoff, what? Get what off?" Jack asked, inching towards him hesitantly. Eyes wide, he watched as Geoff slowed for a second to reveal a snake had bitten into his ankle and attached itself to him. "Geoff! Stop moving! I'll get it!"

He grabbed Geoff when he didn't stop moving and nearly dropped him when he sagged in his hold, seeming to pass out from the panic and stress. He really hated snakes. Jack laid him down gently and moved towards the snake, who had now let go of the unconscious man's ankle and was slithering away. It was just a garter snake, but a snake was a snake according to Geoff Ramsey. Jack tapped said man's face, slowly bringing him back. As his eyes slowly opened, Jack looked at his ankle to assess the damage. Nothing big. He ripped a part of his shorts off and wrapped Geoff's ankle with it.

He heard heavy footsteps and thought that the native man had heard Geoff's screams, when he looked up he nearly cried.

 _"Jack!"_ Cried Gavin, Ray and Ryan following behind him.

He grinned, something good actually came out of Geoff's snake encounter.

"We thought you guys were dead!" They knelt down by Jack and Geoff and were confused at Geoff's state.

"Wait- what's wrong with-?" Ray started before Gavin screamed, pointing at the small wound on Geoff's ankle.

"Snake bite!" Gavin screamed in a high voice. "Is he poisoned?"

"What-? No no no," Jack shook his head is dismay. "It was a little harmless snake, Geoff's just a baby."

"Am not, asshole," said man mumbled and he finally regained full consciousness.

Gavin lunged into Geoff's arms, knocking the man back onto the ground, making the others laugh as they felt their anxieties lift from their shoulders and chests.

"Ray reached across them and grabbed Jack's hand squeezing it before letting go. Jack smiled at the small affection.

"We just found out that you three were okay," Jack told them. "A native man told us that he'd saw you three and pointed us in your direction."

Ryan's eyebrows raised and he shifted to look at Ray, "hey, didn't you two say you saw a man? I didn't tell you, but I saw someone when I first woke up and I'm pretty sure he was the same guy. We've all met the same guy."

Ray hummed, "well, he's had a heck of a day."

Geoff made an affronted noise at Ray's statement, "and we haven't?" Ray glared at him and Geoff grumbled.

Jack shook his head and smiled, "I'm really glad we're all okay, it didn't seem like so a few hours ago. If it weren't for that guy, it would've took us longer to find each other."

"Speaking of not thinking we were all alive..." Geoff grabbed Ray's arm and gave it a squeeze and reach out with his other hand to lay it on Jack's thigh before giving them a wobbly smile, "I...I'm so sorry."

Ryan frowned, puzzled, "sorry? For what?"

Geoff tried to clear his throat, but there was a persistent lump stuck in his throat as his emotions continued to rise and pressed his lips together, "I made the decision to leave, I put us in danger." He ignored the crack in his voice.

"Oi! Shut the hell up!" Gavin told him, smacking him in the arm. "We wanted to leave just as much as you did! Blaming yourself is just bang out of order!"

Ryan groaned, "Gavin, we have no clue what the fuck that means!"

Geoff laughed, the change of subject lifted his spirits. "It means something's unfair, dude." As he felt Jack's hand on his back, rubbing in a slow circular motion, a fondness of his boyfriends grew. He preferred how they handled emotional situations: blowing past it like it was nothing and then quickly changing the subject.

Ray scoffed looking at Ryan, "we've been fucking this guy and we still don't understand what he's saying."

Gave got riled up just as Ray expected, "sod off, you prick," but then he grabbed Ray and hugged him. Ray made a startled noise at the sudden show of affection. "Sorry, this whole experience has left my mind absolutely mullered."

"Me too, Vav," he agreed, then a stomach growled.

All eyes went to Jack, who blushed and crossed his arms defensively. Soon after, another stomach growl was heard, this time coming from Gavin.

"We need to find food," Ryan stated, then ran a hand through his hair, feeling helpless. "How do we find food?"

"Fuck," Geoff swore, rubbing his hand over his mouth in worry.

\---

****Mogar was lost in thought as he bit into a piece of steak. He wasn't sure what he was supposed to do now that other people were here on this island. Should he stay away from them? He didn't know for sure, they seemed nice and he was pretty certain that he could take them all in a fight.

They weren't like him, they were innocent- didn't look like they had to fight and hunt for food. Those men wouldn't stand a chance against the creatures that lurk at night.

It wouldn't be long til the sun would set, Mogar figured as he saw the sun's low position in the sky. It would get dark soon and those five men would have to survive against skeletons, creepers, zombies, enderm-

Mogar stood up and grabbed his sword, forgetting his meal, and slamming the door behind him. He was a fool for leaving, he knew he should've stayed with them!

His feet hit the ground to the rhythm of his heart, his breath was coming out in short puffs. Darkness had come and he started to hear the distant hiss of creepers.

He came to an abrupt stop and looked in a circle. He sniffed the air and listened closely. He could hear crickets and a pig nearby. If he listened harder he could hear bones rattling and a hiss that was too close for his liking.

"C'mere piggy!" He heard a high voice cry and started running in it's direction, sword gripped tight in his hand.

"Geoff, I don't like it- I'm hearing weird things!" He heard another exclaim in a weird accent. It was that tall, scrawny weird talking one.

They were talking so loud, they were bound to attract creepers and skeletons.

 _'Do they have a death wish?'_ He wondered, angrily. Why was he putting his life on the line for them again? Then he remembered he didn't have a reason and grew angry with himself.

"Gav, don't worry! It's fi- what the fuck is that?" _Shit._

He came up over a hill and looked down and his eyes widened in panic. They were just standing around a fucking creeper. He yanked his hand out as if to yank them away but didn't realize his voice wasn't working.

"Get awa-" the creeper shimmered and a bright explosion sounded and he flinched.

He found his feet moving before his brain could understand what had happened. He stopped as the smoke grew too thick and he coughed. He felt bile rise in his throat.

_'Goddammit, they're surely dead-'_

"Dude, what the fuck was that?" He heard a choked voice say. His head shot up as a thin figure came out of the smoke and revealed themselves to be the short one with dark hair and glasses. He was covered in ashes and coughing. Mogar ran up to him and grabbed his arm, yanking him away from the smoke.

He made a startled noise, "Ryan-?"

"No, I'm not your 'Ryan'," he told him and shoved him away. They couldn't see in the dark either? They were absolutely defenseless!

He started to hear other voices groaning and complaining. He walked into the dissipating smoke and reached out for their bodies. He grabbed clothing of a shirt and yanked one up and heard another start to stand and grabbed him as well. He took them away from the explosion site and shoved them towards the small one. He realized he'd gotten the bearded one and the blond one.

_'Where were the other two?'_

He sniffed the air and frowned, the smoke was messing with his sense of smell. Mogar heard a shuffling of feet and a rustle of clothing and felt a presence approaching him. He growled, causing one to squawk and the other to make an embarrassing strangled noise, and grabbed them by the collars of their shirts. They stumbled past him as he pulled them forward and threw them at the three other men. It was like taking care of chickens! One of them even made noise akin to a chicken...

"Are you fools?" He growled out, they jerked their heads in his general direction, not really able to see in the dark. Chickens could see better than them.

"What?" One said uneasily and dazed. Chickens could hear better than them too.

"Do you seek death?" He questioned, his voice growing lighter as he felt his anger subside for unknown reasons.

The bearded one stood up on shaky legs, reaching out for a perch to lean on, Mogar was the closest and was grabbed. Bristling at the touch, he didn't attack him for the sudden contact, but grudgingly helped him up.

"No?" He heard one say. It was the one with the tired eyes and intricate designs on his arms.

He sighed and ran a hand over his face. He heard them shuffling towards each other and whispering, but they went ignored to him. This is ridiculous.

He heard a gurgling and alarm rose in his throat, "hurry, we can't stay in one place for long."

They gave him confused frowns and looked to each other.

"The forest is dangerous," he jerked around to see purple eyes hiding in the dark. "Run!"

He pushed through them and pulled at their clothes to make sure they followed. He felt like a coward for running away from the Enderman, but if he attacked the creature, who knew if it would attack one of the others? They would be slowed down if that happened.

His feet didn't make a sound as he ran, but the other's sounded like a stampede of horses were trailing behind him.

As they broke through the trees and made it into the grassy plains, he could hear them tiring. He yelled back at them, fearing that  other creatures were near and ready to attack when they grew tired, but he realized they looked ready to drop, so he reluctantly stopped. He felt defenseless standing there out in the open and he jerked his sword from his belt and strained his ears for the noises of enemies.

 "What the fuck was that?" The sleepy one rasped, placing his hands on his knees as he gasped for breath. The funny talking one dropped to the ground and laid there.

 "It was an Enderman," he ignored the confused looks he received and kept talking. "Gather what's left of your strength. We have to keep going if we want to keep our hides."

 The scrawny, dark haired one wheezed, "I don't run, that's the most I've ever run my whole life, I have no fucking energy left."

 Anger bubbled in his throat. He opened his mouth to retort, but a single arrow pierced the ground beside him and everything and everyone was moving in a blur. He barked at them to move, as they started moving, the bearded one cried out and grasped at his shoulder.  

  _"Jack!"_

 They screamed with panic, limbs stiffening in fright, but Mogar took the bearded ones uninjured arm and threw it over his shoulder. He grabbed at the fabric at his side. The others were stuck close to the bearded ones side as they walked hastily, looking out for anything hiding in the dark.

 The man was heavy and his pained breaths grew worse as they moved.

 "Jack, are you okay?" That sounded ridiculous- had the marked one not seen the arrow protruding from his arm? He ignored the worried group in favor of getting one foot in front of the other.

 "I thi-think so..."

Mogar was so busy trying to get them to the city, he didn't realize when they stepped onto the green and black carpet.

 "What is this place...?" The tall blond one whispered behind him and he blinked, realizing that they were standing at the entrance the city.

 "Achievement City."

 "Doesn't look much like a city," the weird speaking one said.

 "Unless by your standards a city is 5 houses and a tower in a circle," another deadpanned- he turned to see the small dark haired man.

 He mostly ignored their comments. "Just a little further, we're going to the house across from us," he pointed to the house he lived in.

 The group of men stared with wonder in their eyes at the strange star wove into the ground and the giant stone tower.

 "Is this wool?" One questioned, looking down at the soft green and black ground. Someone made a noise of surprise and disbelief.

 "Where'd did you get so much wool? Wait- a better question is how did you do this?" It was the blond one who asked him this time.

 Mogar gave him a funny look, "well, I don't know. I didn't make it."

 There was a brief pause as they made it across the wool.

 "Well," he paused. "Who did?"

 Mogar craned his head to look at the blond and his expression turned uncomfortable, "I don't know." Weirded out by the weak answer, the subject was dropped.

 "Do you think your neighbors could help us?" The weird talking one was squawking again and he started to grow annoyed. What did that mean?

 "What does that mean?" He finally asked angrily, stepping up to his door. He bristled at the weird word, angry that he didn't understand it. He opened the door and brought the wounded man in.

 "No one else lives here, Gavin," the tired man said, "neighbors are people who live in houses beside you." He grunted at the man, not really understanding still, but he wasn't going to let that be known. The men made eye contact with each other but it went ignored by Mogar.

 Geoff was his name, he suddenly remembered- as he fretted over...

 "Jack," he let slip and tried to brush off the embarrassment of all the eyes suddenly on him. "Th-that's your name, right?"

 Stunned by the man knowing his name and dazed by the pain in his shoulder, Jack only nodded.

 Mouth feeling weirdly overused, Mogar turned away and went over to the box by the door, opening it and pulling out a bottle and a small cloth. He walked by over to Jack, noticing the stares of everyone in the room, and fumbled with his next words.

 He licked his lips and grimaced, unable to think of what to say.

 Jack made a small noise of surprise and said, "you probably need me to take my shirt off," he gingerly started unbuttoning the shirt with one hand. He could barely get through the first button, so the scruffy small one scurried over and helped him.

 Once the shirt was off, Mogar gripped the m- Jack's shoulder, "this will really hurt," he barely warned him before yanking the arrow out in a swift motion, eliciting a scream not only out of Jack but the other men.

 "Fucking hell?" The tired one croaked out as the squawking one started to gag. He ignored them in favor of carelessly dropped the bloody arrow to the ground and took the bottle and pulled the cork off the top.

Jack sucked in short pained breaths through his teeth. The scruffy small one was running his hands nervously over his shoulder and arm. He didn't understand what the small one was trying to achieve by doing so.

 "What's in the bottle?" The tired guy asked once he's calmed down, Mogar didn't miss the suspicious look he received. He wasn't necessarily threatened by the look, though, when he reminded himself that these people were literal _chickens_.

 Mogar took a cloth and titled the opened bottle upside down against the cloth before speaking, "it's a healing potion."

 He heard a snicker as he wiped the wet cloth over the arrow wound, he turned and raised his eyebrow at them, not understanding what was so funny.

 The blond one rolled his eyes and snorted, "yeah- healing potion alright. Don't you mean antisept- _what the fuck is that shit_."

 Mogar turned back to Jack as gasps were heard from all around. Jack made a shocked noise and began touching his shoulder where the arrow wound used to be just seconds before.

 He felt his skin. No wound or scars- nothing. All that was left was the drying blood. He opened his mouth in bewilderment.

 Mogar put the cork back on the lid and took the bottle back to the chest by the door, "I told you, it's a healing potion."

 The blond one flubbed with his words for a moment. Mogar only caught bits and pieces of what he was trying to say.

 "-that doesn't- no, _how?_ \- I'm dreaming or we're dead or I've drank some sea water and went nuts- this can't- _what the fu_ -" he stopped suddenly, slouching with a grumble. He ran a hand down his face as the sleepy looking one patted his knee in what was probably a way to comfort.

 There was a moment of stunned silence until the small one with glasses spoke.

 He coughed, then blushed when all eyes went to him, "well this place is really fucking weird." No one commented on that, seeing at that was extremely true. They were also bone tired- and they didn't need to explain why.

 Mogar twitched, uncomfortable for a moment. He was unsure of how to proceed.

 "It's clearly unsafe to go outside and you'll need your rest, "he stopped when they turned their eyes to him, still surprised every time he spoke.

You can stay here for tonight. I have...extra blankets and pillows."

 Jack frowned, furrowing his eyebrows, "didn't you say the houses here were unoccupied?"

 He thought for a moment then shook his head at the question, "people don't occupy them, but I don't know if something else is living in them."

 They made no other argument after that, resigning to sitting together on the floor as Mogar flitted around trying to scrounge up enough blankets for them. They watched as his shoulders grew more tense and his hands grew stiff. He probably didn't know how to react to people in his home. It was personal and it was an abrupt invasion of privacy. But he didn't comment on it and neither did they, so they resorted to being friendly and thanking him.

 "Hey...I just realized," Tired Eyes' voice cracked and someone snickered. "Shut up, asshole- I just realized that we haven't introduced ourselves or some shit."

 Mogar pulled a green blanket from a chest under his bed and handed it to Jack. He realized that the man was waiting for him to respond and he quickly nodded.

 "Okay, so you know Jack," he pointed to Jack, who gave a meek wave. "I'm Geoff, over there is Ryan, beside him is Ray and the annoying prick over here is Gavin." He pointed to each and Mogar tried to place the name with each face. It was difficult, he'd only known one name until now. His own.

 The weird one- Gavin was his name- grumbled, "I have had a absolutely _shit_ day so I wouldn't mind if you didn't give our new friend the wrong impression of me!"

 "Oh _you've_ had a bad day?" Geoff scoffed at him, "also- bad impression? Buddy, you're an asshole and he would've learned it sooner than later anyway-"

 Jack interrupted them by standing up and approaching Mogar, who nearly startled because he had been instanced by the odd conversation. He took an involuntary step back and sized the man up, noticing the open expression on his face.

 "If you could ignore the overgrown children behind me, I'd like to thank you for saving our asses- and healing my arm," Jack smiled at him, grateful for the kindness-albeit oddly given. His eyes widened and eyebrows shot up to his forehead. "Oh! I'm sorry- we still don't know your name?"

 "...Mogar," index finger poking into his chest as he gave his name. He frowned at the snicker by the sq- Gavin, but ignored it when he heard a smack soon after. "I'm Mogar."

 Jack stuck his hand out, palm open and up. He frowned at it, not understanding the meaning of it. Jack  watched as Mogar simply stared at his hand.

 "Shit- sorry, it's a handshake," still not understanding, Mogar tentatively placed his hand on Jack's. He heard Geoff snort, but remained otherwise silent. Jack smiled at the innocence and didn't try to fix the 'handshake' "Ah, well you kinda got it."  

 "How do we shake if our hands are placed this way?" Mogar seemed to never change his confused expression. He started push down on Jack's hand. His grown somehow deepened when Jack suddenly took his hand away.

 "I'll show you later?" Mogar seemed to accept that and turned away from him and went back to rummaging through a chest. Jack turned to face his lovers and gave them a confused shrug and wasn't surprised to get the same gesture in return.

 Once situated with enough blankets and cushions, they fell into a restless sleep. Water for miles and hiding threats lurking in the night haunted their dreams. Mogar stayed awake as he laid on his bed, unable to find sleep with other beings in his home. His _safe_ place. He felt vaguely annoyed and uneasy about the whole situation.

 He kept staring at his hand as well.

  _'Handshakes are fucking weird.'_

 He sat there watching them until the first sign of light was seen over the hill. It was safe now, no creature could leave the dark. He looked towards the door, he was itching for some privacy- not used to not having it, and stood, making his way to it. Giving the sleeping forms one last look, he stepped out the door and closed it quietly behind him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed it!


End file.
